Shamrock Smoothie

Happy St. Patrick’s Day! Wanna know how this Irish gal is getting into the holiday spirit? With a green smoothie, of course! Irish or not, anyone can enjoy this nutrient-dense smoothie. It is packed with spinach, which gives the smoothie a nice green color and provides a good source of iron, folate, vitamin A, and much more. This smoothie also contains fruit, in the form of a whole apple and banana. The banana is rich in potassium, vitamin B6 (pyridoxine), vitamin C, and fiber. The Granny Smith apple contains fiber, as well as vitamin C and potassium. {Fun fact: the vitamin C found in the fruits helps with iron absorption from the spinach. YAY.} Almond milk, which is used as the base of the smoothie, is low in calories and a nice alternative for those who are lactose intolerant or sensitive to dairy.

And, the best part of this delicious smoothie? All of the ingredients are naturally gluten free! Follow the recipe below to make this tasty green smoothie, which I’ve dubbed the “Shamrock Smoothie” because it’s St. Paddy’s Day and all.

Shamrock Smoothie

Makes ~2 cups Serving Size: 1 cup

Ingredients:

1 ripe medium-sized banana

1 Granny Smith apple, cored and chunked (I chose to leave the peel on the apple since there are so many nutrients in the apple skin itself; however, if you don’t have a high-powered blender, you may need to peel the apple before adding to blender. Also, if you choose to leave the skin on, be aware that your smoothie may not have a perfectly smooth texture, which I’m totally ok with because it makes this smoothie even more exciting!)

2 cups fresh baby spinach

1 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk (any nut-based milk or coconut milk should work well too; check ingredients on label to make sure the milk is gluten free–most brands are but it’s better to be safe than sorry!)

1 cup cubed ice

Directions:

Combine only the spinach and milk in a blender, and blend until smooth.

Add the remaining ingredients to the blender, and blend all ingredients together well.

Serve and enjoy!

I don’t like my smoothies to be super sweet and found this smoothie to have the perfect sweetness from the natural sugars of the fruits. If you do like your smoothies to be on the sweeter side, feel free to add additional fruit (ex: pineapple, mango, orange) or a natural sweetener (ex: honey, pure maple syrup).